Hockey

Admirals can't hold late lead, fall to IceHogs

But the Admirals failed to hold on Sunday for just the second time this season and it resulted in another overtime loss.

Rockford overcame a two-goal deficit to beat Milwaukee, 4-3, and give the Admirals a 1-6 record in games decided in overtime. They also fell to 11-0-2-0 when leading after two periods.

"We should've been able to hold that lead," Milwaukee coach Dean Evason said. "We just didn't do the right things aggressively in order to give ourselves a chance to win."

Adam Clendening's goal with 20.2 seconds left in overtime gave Rockford its first win in its last eight road games and handed Milwaukee its third loss in its last 12 home contests as the three-game weekend series between the teams ended.

With injuries to Magnus Hellberg and Scott Darling, goalie Marek Mazanec says he played in three games in three days for the first time.

He had to face 43 shots by Rockford, and the third one in overtime cost him.

Milwaukee won a faceoff in the right corner of its zone and the puck was sent behind the Admirals' net. A good forecheck by Rockford caused a bit of a scrum for the puck in the left corner before it bounced off the wall past Milwaukee's Mark Van Guilder on the left side.

"We'd certainly like to make a better play, a sounder play," Evason said. "Once you win a faceoff clean like that, you expect to exit the zone, no question."

Klas Dahlbeck got the puck at the left point, slid it along the blue line to Clendening and he was left all alone for a slap shot from the right circle.

"I basically just looked up and it was me and the goalie," Clendening said. "I just ripped it."

The puck went in past the left side of the goalie.

"I don't really know what happened," Mazanec said. "I think I was really tired because of three games in a row. It's hard. I think I just lost my concentration for a second. I thought I was going to have the puck because it was not a real hard shot. I just missed it. Maybe there was a little deflection there."

Rockford outshot Milwaukee, 43-28, including 20-6 in the first period. The score was tied after the first 20 minutes, however, on goals by the Admirals' Vinny Saponari and the IceHogs' Alex Broadhurst.

Milwaukee scored both goals of the second period, beginning with a power-play goal by Miikka Salomaki with 7:16 remaining.

With 49 seconds left, defenseman Joonas Jarvinen broke a 32-game streak without a goal and picked up his second of the season when he scored to give the Admirals a 3-1 lead.

But Rockford tied the score in the first 3 minutes of the final period on goals by Jeremy Morin from the right circle.

His first beat Mazanec glove side with 17:40 to go and his second came just 23 seconds later when the puck reached the open right corner of the net as the IceHogs completed a 2-on-1 breakaway.